Finally after all the hardship and
complaining in the wilderness the Israelites reached the border of
the Promised Land. Moses did what any good leader would do; he
listened to the Lord and sent out twelve men to spy out the land,
one from each tribe. He told them to see what the land was like. He
wanted them to report back on everything, from the fertile soil, to
the trees, to the fortified cities, everything. He wanted a clear
picture of what the land was like, in order to plan their entrance.
He even told them to bring back some of the samples of the crops
that they do see.
And off they went. I think they
must have been very excited to see this 'Promised Land' that the
Lord was leading them to. He had promised that it was a land of
milk and honey and they were looking forward to seeing it. They
must have been nervous too, treading on unfamiliar territory, not
knowing what to expect. But what they saw amazed them. It was the
most wonderful country imaginable, God had been right! The cluster
of grapes they cut down was so big that it took two of them to
carry it on a pole.
"We arrived in the land you sent us
to see, and it is indeed a magnificent country - a land flowing
with milk and honey. Here is some of its fruit as proof." Numbers
13:27
God was certainly true to His Word
and was about to provide them with the biggest harvest they had
ever seen. I think Moses' heart must have been fluttering with joy!
He must have been so excited to see and experience this wonderful
country.
God is faithful and true to His
Promises. We can trust Him when He promises us something. The whole
Bible is full of God's promises and we can hold on to it. He
promised us a Savior and He came and now He promises us a wonderful
future ahead when He comes again and we need to hold on to it. I am
quite certain the illustration of a Promised Land is given to us in
order for us to imagine the Promised Land, the New Jerusalem,
promised to us. Our stomachs should be fluttering with excitement
and joy of what lies ahead. A picture of the New Jerusalem was
shown to John and he tried to convey it to us in the book of
Revelation. I'd like to share a few verses:
'And I saw the holy city, the New
Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven like a beautiful
bride prepared for her husband.' Revelation 21:2
'Look, the home of God is now with
His people. He will live with them, and they will be His people.
God Himself will be with them. He will remove all of their sorrows,
and there will be no more death or sorrow or crying or pain. For
the old world and its evils are gone forever.' Revelation 21:3,
4
'The new Jerusalem was filled with
the glory of the Lord and sparkled like a gem, crystal clear like
jasper.' Revelation 21:11
'And the city has no need of sun or
moon, for the glory of God illuminates the city and the Lamb is its
light.' Revelation 21:23
I don't know about you, but it
makes me very excited to read this! God promises something better
for us. Thank God this world is not all there is! There is
something much much better on the way! We can trust God's promises
and look forward to it. He is faithful and true and it will come to
pass at the right time. Are you ready?
Father thank you so much for this
lovely city where all of Your children are going to live one day!
We can't wait to join You there. Help us to be faithful now too and
to praise You no matter what our circumstances. We love You and we
thank you for Jesus who made all this possible by His death on the
cross. Amen